Every day is like a nightmare, no TOC for me. 2010 TOC looks to be off the hook. I wish all of you guys the best of luck and enjoy every minute of your weekend at Clear Lake on the SCBBBC. 1st place $1500.00 while fishing in a kick boat and last place is $100.00. That's totally wild guys. Free rooms at the Skylark and the food at T-N-T is great, Your dinner will be like a company Christmas party, but with real friends that you enjoy fishing with every month. All of you guys earned this two days of bass fishing as you have competed in the worlds best elite kick boat format around.
This years SCBBBC tour had an average of 35 anglers at every stop along the tour. Last year Noah Stevens promised me to take the club a notch higher and he did just that, and for that I thank you. We have all enjoyed what the SCBBBC has to offer and for 1/3 ish of the club it's not over yet. They will have the time of there lives fishing in the worlds highest ever payout event in the history of any float tube / kick boat organization on one of the worlds best bass factories. Have fun guys and please take lots and lots of pictures. 2010 was the SCBBBC's 27th year as an organized float tube / kick boat club. Believe it or not, it has only changed very little in all those years. The main thing that has changed over the past 27 years are the faces and the number of faces that I see at each meeting and each tournaments. Every new year brings new faces and ways to catch these little green fish we call bass. We have always had 10 tour stops followed bt the TOC. Some of the tour venues have changed as the number of faces grew over the years, but the goal has always been the same. We're all there at dark-O-clock in the morning to sign in and get ready to blast off and fish for five good bites.
At each and every tour stop, some of us get those five good bites while some only get a few and other get none as I did at a few stops on the 2010 tour. I can't quite pin point what it is that makes me have a great time even during tournaments that I didn't so much as get a nibble. It's hard to get a blank, but it is made easy when I see the anglers at the weigh-ins that did get the bites. This year I was able to be there when several SCBBBC members weighed in there first keepers while fishing with the club. I kind of relive per-curiously through them as I know the feelings they enjoyed from the minute they feel the bite and then putting that first fish in the live-well and opening that lid periodically throughout the day to see your Mr Greene. Those are some great feeling for sure, and then they're thoughts as they Oar there boats back to the weigh-in knowing that they have there first fish for the scale and they now get to get there picture taken in front of the SCBBBC Banner. Ohhhhh what a great feeling as you can't wait to see your picture on the clubs web site.
I won't soon forget my buddy Walt's first fish he caught with the club during 2010 at Clear Lake or the time we spent prefishing for the Open and I'm sure he won't forget those fish too. Then there was Michaela first keepers at Clear Lake and I know she is probably all ready planning her strategies to put more fish in the live-well in 2011. And that member we call AC /Zack. I met AC for the first time at a Lake Ralphine turkey shoot of all places. This guy joins the club a year or two ago and now is sponsored by one of the wests best anglers, Mr. Dobynes. This guy has became a hell of an angler over night it seems like. Then we have the Rookie of the year, Chris Lapoint. This guy came from no where and kicked some bass this season. Watch out for him next year as he'll be in the top 5 more often then not I bet.
Let's not forget Mike Ayers, your award wining web master for the SCBBBC and the guy who managed all the club funds for 2010. This guy pulls off another SCBBBC AOY. This wasn't his first and I'm sure it's not his last. Watch out for his drop shot in 2011. I think there's another angler out there that will be another AOY hopefully in 2011, Matt Nyiri. I remember meeting Matt at the ramp at Spring Lake a few years ago and doing my little SCBBBC pitch while walking my dog. And now he hold a Rookie of the year and runner up for AOY. Keep it going Matt and thanks for joining the SCBBBC and bringing Camel-Back along.
It's been one out of 27 years and it's one year I'll always remember fishing. This was one of my hardest fishing years yet. There's not much a guy can do if he doesn't get the bites. I wouldn't have changed a thing this year and I fished my butt off at each and every SCBBBBC tour stop. This was my first year fishing as an unemployed angler and a victim of the recession. One of the cool things about this club is that it's affordable. I couldn't and wouldn't afford to fish some other event I really would have like too, but that's all part of this economy. Regardless of the recession the club still enjoyed the highest membership ever. Where else can you get the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat for $40.00 plus a little gas?
We all enjoyed another great season while fishing these float tube / kick boat event, but we all must remember it all happens because of a few elected officers, Noah, DJ, Mike, Martin, Mr Bird. These guys are the ones that do more then anyone might think to keep this ball rolling. There main goal is to keep there every day lives going and then making sure we all have a smooth, organized and fun event and meeting all year long. Thanks again guys for all your hard work and effort in 2010. And thanks to the many sponsors that have always been there to make our Clear Lake State Classic the best two day event in the world. Even if it rains all three days we're there. Without those sponsors all we have is fishing.
2011 looks like we'll have some old faces in new official position and I'm sure they'll do a fine job, but they have some huge shoes to fill. Good luck guys and always remember that you have a lot of people behind you and always willing to help when needed.
P.S. I can't wait to see what 2011, the 28th year of the Sonoma County Belly Boat Bass Club has to offer the lucky anglers who join them. Thanks to everyone who came out and participated in a SCBBBC tournament and meeting. Have a great Thanks Giving and be sure to spend a lot of quality time with your family members and friends. See ya all on the water.
Rich Caro
